Over the course of your PhD
studies you will collect, read and review a large body of literature and
information in various formats. Keeping track of the literature you encounter
can be facilitated by using a reference manager. An efficient reference
management workflow simplifies the academic writing process.
This
article will focus on
·
Practical
and efficient reference management
·
Choosing
a reference manager
·
Building
your reference library
·
Sharing
references with colleagues
·
Choosing
a reference manager
A reference manager is the
software you use to handle references and full-text documents, and citations
while writing. References can be handled manually as well, but the reference
manager allows for greater flexibility and efficiency.
The scientific disciplines vary
in how references are written and consequently in how references are managed. Therefore,
some reference managers may be preferred within your discipline. Other factors
are personal preferences and work style. Choose a reference manager that adapts
easily to your way of working and lets you establish an efficient workflow.
Take a look at the following statements and consider how important they are to
your research:
·
I
want to collect both references and full text-articles
·
I
want to archive and organize my references
·
I
want to share a pool of references with my co-authors
·
I
need a device-independent solution and prefer cloud storage
·
It
is important to synchronize my reference database across devices
·
I
have to be able to edit reference styles when I publish my articles in
particular journals
·
I
want to share annotations and I discuss references with people in my research
communities
BRIEF
DESCRIPTIONS OF REFERENCE MANAGERS
There are several reference
managers to choose from. Here are a few of the most popular ones. Click on Show
more for a brief description of their main features.
Compiling
your reference library
A modern reference manager can
store both a reference and an accompanying full-text version of the referenced
work. Your reference manager can thus function as your own research library
directly in your computer and gives easy access to your literature.
Building
your collection
Make a habit of storing all
useful references to research literature as you come across them. This practice
will save time later when you are writing.
Building your reference
collection can be done in several ways and you will probably use them all at
some point.
Registering the reference
manually – this is mostly done for older material not readily available online,
especially books and grey literature
Transferring from reference
databases like Web of Knowledge or PubMed;- here you may transfer large sets of
references
Downloading a reference at the
journal home page
Downloading references from
Google Scholar
Pulling reference data from the
PDF of the article
Always check references for
accuracy; proofreading references directly saves time later and allows you to
focus on writing when you use the reference.
Organizing
your references
As your collection of
references mounts up you will need to organise them, which can be done in a
number of ways. It is always useful to be able to sort the library according
to:
·
author
·
year
·
title
·
type
of reference
·
topic
A particularly useful feature
in many reference managers is the possibility of creating your own keywords.
When downloading references you can choose to include the topical keywords
provided. However, you may need to index your references differently than in
the source, and creating your own keywords will let you do that. By adapting
keywords based on your own retrieval needs you ensure efficient access to the
relevant literature in your library.
Keeping notes is useful when
working with literature. Many reference managers allow you to store such notes
in conjunction with the reference. Some reference managers also allow
notetaking in and highlighting full-text documents.
Sharing
your references
When working in a networked
environment, sharing literature and references with our colleagues should be
easy. A reference manager may facilitate effective sharing.
Though the references in your
library refer back to literature you use or deem relevant, they would be
equally relevant to other researchers in your field. If you work in a research
group, sharing your reference libraries can provide a common and collective
knowledge base.
Social media allow for sharing
of references with researchers outside your closest circles, providing
opportunities to find new and interesting research literature and to make new
contacts. In particular, you may find recommendations or annotations of the
works as well, giving an immediate understanding of the usefulness of the new
reference.
Some Popular
Reference Managers
EndNote
EndNote is a desktop program
that allows you to store, file and search bibliographic references, PDFs and
images. It has a unique ‘Cite While You Write’ functionality that inserts
citations and bibliographies into your written work. It is freely
available to students and staff
of the University of Melbourne for both PC and Mac.
Your EndNote Library is a fully
searchable database that you can annotate with research notes, which is great
for literature reviews. You can link PDFs of articles to the relevant
EndNote reference and also annotate these PDFs stored in your library. One of
EndNote’s major strengths is its stability; it rarely fails. It has a cloud
based back-up system in Endnote Online and is supported by the University of
Melbourne Library, which means you can go to classes and clinics,
access guides and get online
help when you have questions.
Endnote X7 imports PDFs and
citation information directly from a folder on your desktop: great when you are
finding articles through social media or other ‘non-traditional’ sources.
Zotero
Zotero is a free, open-source program that
can be used to create, store and organise references into folders. You can
attach PDFs and other files to references in your library and insert citations
into Word, Google Docs and Open Office. References can be tagged and sorted to
allow advanced searching.
Versions of Zotero
- Zotero for Firefox is a browser extension enabling you to capture and organise references without leaving Firefox. A plugin is needed to insert citations into Word documents.
- Zotero Standalone is a separate program downloaded to your computer and can integrate with Firefox, Chrome or Safari. Word plugins are included.
An advantage of Zotero is that
you can export lists of articles (and PDFs) or books from many major databases
and websites with just a few clicks. It’s also useful for exporting references
from less traditional resources like websites and wikis. You can also set
up a Zotero web
account to sync your
library from any location.
RefWorks
RefWorks is a cloud-based application that
allows you to store, organise, search and retrieve bibliographic references in
a web-hosted account. Like other reference management tools, it works with Word
to insert citations and create a bibliography. Access is free to Melbourne
University students and staff and, unlike with Endnote, the free access
continues after you leave the university.
Mendeley
Mendeley is a free application comprising two
components – Mendeley Web and Mendeley Desktop – that allow you to generate
citations and bibliographies in Microsoft Word, OpenOffice and LaTex. You can
add and organise PDFs in your library from your computer, as well as import
PDFs from other reference management tools such as EndNote, Papers or Zotero.
PDFs can be read and annotated using sticky notes and highlighting tools.
Mendeley’s strength lies in its
networking and collaboration functionality. Researchers can collaborate
securely online to share papers, notes and annotations with peers and can
network and discover papers, people and public groups. Users can form groups
that can be either public or private. Public groups are open for new members to
join and share resources and communicate with each other.
As with most contemporary
reference tools, Mendeley can sync your library via the web, iPhone or iPad.
Reference managers